Welcome to The Real Story

The Real Story is a celebration of creative nonfiction. Not that there’s anything wrong with fiction. Look, we like making stuff up as much as anyone else does, but we’re more excited about the creative possibilities of telling the truth. We love true stories (and even mostly true stories), personal essays, memoirs, diaries, sketches and literary journalism. Reality is so much stranger than fiction. Tastes better, too.

We’re pleased to announce the third live edition of The Real Story will feature headliner Michael Symmons Roberts: Forward, Costa and Whitbread Prize-winning poet, Professor of Poetry at MMU and co-author of essay collection Edgelands. Also on the bill are novelist Marli Roode, writers Adam Farrer and Nick Thompson and co-hosts Kate Feld and...

It’s just a few days until Stuart Maconie headlines The Real Story Live! To get y’all excited, here’s a new essay by Mark Powell. Mark will be reading it, alongside Sarah Handyside, Danielle Peet, and co-editors Nija Dalal and Kate Feld on April 22 at 7:30pm at Gulliver’s in Manchester. More info here. —— A crisp March...

To whet your appetite for our first reading event, here’s a new essay by Adam Farrer, ‘The Lump’. Adam will be reading it, alongside Laura Barton, Benjamin Judge and co-editors Nija Dalal and Kate Feld on January 20 at 7:30pm at Gulliver’s in Manchester. More info here. Image by Emma Farrer. —– ...